Caselaw Update: Liability of Former Operators under Surface Use Agreements in Wyoming
Recent caselaw and the application of Wyoming’s Split Estate Act has significantly increased risk for operators in Wyoming, who may be held liable for the conduct of their assignees... Read More
Caselaw Update: Exercise of Eminent Domain under the Natural Gas Act
Since the early 1800s, natural gas has been an integral part of the nation’s energy supply. Roughly one hundred years later, a cross-country natural gas pipeline network began to take shape and expand. In 1938, in... Read More
Caselaw Update: U.S. District Court Rejects New Mexico Fracking Ban
On August 3, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico rejected an attempt to ban fracking by denying... Read More
Federal Litigation Update: Executive Order 14008
On June 15, 2021, the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana granted a nationwide preliminary injunction in favor of Louisiana and twelve other states which halted enforcement... Read More
Legislative Update: Texas SB 13
Earlier this year, the General Land Office (“GLO”) created the Texas Defense Task Force (more on that here) to defend state land rights and combat federal policies that threaten the Texas... Read More
Legislative Update: SB 1259
On May 24, 2021, Governor Abbott signed SB 1259 into law, effective immediately. The bill was introduced by the state legislature in response to... Read More
Caselaw Update: Royalty Checks and Implied Ratification
Under contract law generally, a party who has not expressly accepted an agreement can nevertheless be deemed to have impliedly accepted, or ratified it, by their actions. For... Read More
Lease Washouts
Lease washouts occur when operators release or allow a current lease to expire in order to get a “clean slate.” These “clean slates” take the form of a new lease that... Read More
Caselaw Update: Cost-Free Royalty Provisions and BlueStone Natural Resources II, LLC v. Randle
It has become increasingly common for modern oil and gas lease forms and addenda to include a “cost-free” royalty provision – but... Read More
Update: The Texas Defense Task Force
In our last post, we discussed the GLO’s announcement of the formation of the Texas Defense Task Force (“Task Force”), which was organized to... Read More